★★★
“We live for the moments that give us definition…”
The Society of New Cuisine is a gripping monologue performed by debut writer, seasoned actor and musical theatre performer Chris Fung and directed by Megan Brewer.
With a bare stage and chair Fung takes us through the events surrounding the death of his late wife, Beth, and what his life has become afterwards. We watch him spiral and flit between moments of chagrined poetic soliloquies delivered almost exclusively to selected members of the audience. His use of space and characterisation is spot-on. Fung knows how to draw in an audience.
He has an energetic personification of existential crisis but the poetry in his script is lost in bouts of extreme fury and leaves a sharp ringing in your ears.
Brewer’s directional choices for sections of the performance feel as though they are there to shock with little backing as to why. It gets a tad uncomfortable watching Fung jolt aggressively on the floor embodying a caterpillar. Different choices could have been made that would have produced the desired effect.
The women (portrayed by Fung) are clearly written through the male gaze as they provide a provocative and mysterious desire for Fung’s character. The entire piece has an overarching theme of desire which is developed and explained in a variety of ways but one doesn’t want to give the game away with specifics.
After establishing the many characters Fung weaves, we’re led to the Society of New Cuisine. His introduction to a dystopia found within Tottenham Court Road is powerful and vivid.
One of the stand-out moments comes with his final goodbye to Beth, which encapsulates true love. It’s painfully beautiful to listen to.
We feel his acceptance of life without her, and we feel dread when he returns to SNC.
This is a real, raw and provocative production that seamlessly weaves multiple threads of reality.
The Society for New Cuisine is on at Underbelly till August 27th
Review by Jade Flack
